Interview: Oswaldo Contramaestre from Guerra Santa

Author’s note: if you want to read the Spanish version of the interview, go here.

Nota del autor: si quieren leer la versión en español de la entrevista, vayan para acá.

As it seems, nothing can stop Guerra Santa (Holy War). The Venezuelan band –from Táchira, to be precise- have been in the business for almost 25 years and they are not willing to seize their fight; their latest album, aptly titled La Guerra Apenas Empieza (The War It Just Begun), is the living proof of a group in pretty good shape and with clear ideas. For those that are not familiarized with them, they are owners of a Heavy/Power Metal style with strong connotations in the guitars and with pretty meticulous melodies –a group that would not leave anybody in an indifferent mood. There are good times in the Venezuelan combo and we approached one of the group’s guitar players, Oswaldo Contramaestre, for a quick interview through the phone. We touched different subjects like their influences, the band’s writing style and many other concepts. As usual, I hope you enjoy it.

Note: this interview was done almost a month ago, in case you notice some mistakes in the chronology of some of the answers.

KT:¿Qué tal ha sido la recepción del nuevo álbum? Well, first of all, thank you for doing this interview. Congrats on the new album, La Guerra Apenas Empieza. Tell me about the reception of the new album.

OC: My regards. Thank you for the interview. As far as the reception of the new album goes, the reviews and comments received have been positive; it really is an album we did con a lot of spirit and desire so you guys could enjoy it and that you have empathy with the tracks. Until now, the comments have been positive; sure, we’re still in the process in letting people about it with the tour and, well, cusica.com are in charge of the distribution and we are doing shows all around the country –you can communicate through social network.

KT: this is your first album since the one you did back in 2.011, La Sombra del Bufón (The Shadow of the Buffoon). What differences can we find between that album and the new one you just made?

OC: well, we are always or at least trying to be in a constant musical evolution –not because we choose to, but because it’s a natural thing. A natural evolution has been the changes in the lineup: we now have a new drummer and a new guitar player. We tried to make it a little more aggressive, not by any reason in particular, but because we felt that was what the album was asking for at the time; but the essence and the style of the band remains intact.

KT: as you mentioned, you had begun the tour of the new album. How has the tour been doing so far and what concerts do you have planned in the near future?

OC: at short term, we are going to tour around the country. We are going to promote the album heavily so that people can see the band’s renewed energy; in fact, that’s why we named the album that way, La Guerra Apenas Empieza, because we are living in a time with a lot of desire, good vibe and yearn for playing within the band. We are also holding conversations to play outside the country, but we still have to wait. We’ll be touring around the country, to the places we missed in the previous tour and to the places people constantly ask us to go to in the social media.

KT: something I always liked to ask in these interviews is about the beginnings of the bands. How did Guerra Santa start? How was the incepcion?

OC: well, Guerra Santa started back in 1991 in San Cristobal by Marino Vázquez and they had intrigues of making a band. Like all Rock bands, the idea started to grow until turning into the current Guerra Santa that we are presenting.

KT: which were your influences?

OC: the thing is we have so many different influences and I can tell you that the only founding member of this line up is Marino Vázquez and he used to listen to a lot of Ozzy, Black Sabbath, a lot of classic Rock. But now, with all the different members and group of ages, we currently have a lot of multiple musical tastes and tendencies. But around those years we used to listen to what everybody heard: Iron Maiden, Pantera, Metallica, etc. And always looking for that sense of identity.

KT: a question that I always do to the guests in the Blog is make them do a Top 10 of their favorite albums so we get to know a little bit more about their musical tastes. Can you make a Top 10 of your favorite albums?

(*Here we have the participation of the band’s other guitar player, Gerardo Perdigón*)

GP: hi there, this is Gerardo Perdigón talking, the other guitarist of the band. Answering your question, each one of us has many influences and a huge amount of records. In my case, of records that influenced me, I can mention Black Sabbath’s Dehumanizer, Yngwie’s Rising Force, Slayer’s Reign in Blood, Sepultura’s Beneath The Remains and well, there are many more, but those are the ones that gets to me at the time.

OC: here Oswaldo again. Well, I’m going to give you just a Top 5 to complement Gerardo’s. Megadeth’s Rust In Peace, Pantera’s Cowboys From Hell, Sepultura’s Chaos A.D., Dream Theater’s Images & Words and Slayer’s Reign In Blood. And I may slot in Anthrax’s Persistence of Time.

KT: I wanted to ask you guys about the country’s economic situation. It certainly is not a simple scenario for all the citizens involved and for musicians is the same. In your case, how did that affect you?

OC: it is not a secret that the economic situation that we are living in the country and the fact that said thing affects all of us in many sectors. Well, groups are affected in everything that concerns production expenses, merchandising, making t-shirts, all of that. And what is really difficult to do today is quality albums. Why? Because you need quality equipment. While there is a great amount of quality in the scene these days, that is an important difference between making a good album and making an excellent one. All of that affects. But that is part of the spirit of Rock: no matter how difficult things are, you can beat them.

KT: going back to purely musical subjects, where do you get inspiration to write the lyrics?

OC: every lyric has its own soul and spirit. I believe that the inspiration for every song has its different moments and circumstances because there are tunes that start due to a melody or by the music in general, and from that we start writing the lyrics. Sometimes is the opposite and the music comes thanks to the lyrics. I think that what we always try is to give a positive message: that every song holds an empathy with action or a story, but that each and every one of them is looking to the future in a positive manner.

KT: as far as the instrumental aspect goes, what can you tell us about the writing process? Is a collective effort or there may be a main composer?

OC: like I said, each tune has its own soul and spirit. While there are some things that we repeat, we don’t have a formula and things can come up in many ways: somebody can whistle a melody; somebody can come with an idea or something like that. Besides, we all have different influences and that helps in the writing process.

KT: being a band with such a long career, is there any interesting anecdote that you may tell us? One in particular that stands out?

OC: I’m going to tell you an anecdote that happened to us when we travelled to Argentina to play in a show. A transport took us to the concert, but you know that the normal thing in an Argentinian is to say hello to somebody with a kiss on the cheek, right? The Venezuelan just normally gives a handshake or a hug, tops. We get in the transport, which it was pretty much like a bus, and there were lots of person that went to the show, just like it was a small tour. Well, the bus had an accident a block away from our hotel and at the time we stuck around to be with those guys, but it was getting late and we had to get up early the next morning. They understood and when it was time to say goodbye, we had a line of drunk and sweaty rockers giving us goodbye kisses; but, well, we knew that was a way to show affection from our Argentinian brothers and we left many friends and brothers down there.

KT: thank you for the interview, Oswaldo. Is there any message that you want to give to your fans and to our readers? Where

OC: we always stay in touch through the social media. You can look for us as GuerraSantavzla on Instagram and by the same name in Twitter and Youtube; you can look for us on Facebook as just Guerra Santa. We try to stay on day with that and with the people that write to us. The message is that we’ll see each other in the concerts because there is a lot of talent in here and we cannot let the scene die. See you on the shows and on the road.